Where Love Begins (Where There is Love Book 1) by Donna Fletcher Crow

Author:Donna Fletcher Crow [Crow, Donna Fletcher]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: historical romance, english christianity, eighteenth century, evangelical anglicans, christian romance
Publisher: Verity Press
Published: 2016-02-11T05:00:00+00:00

Fifteen

PHILLIP STOOD ON THE PATH in a shaft of late afternoon sunlight. For a moment Catherine felt as if she were seeing him for the first time—his striking height, his endearing thinness, his fleeting smile. During the past two weeks she had thought of him with confused emotions, because she hadn’t the slightest idea of whether he was thinking of her at all. Indeed, it was impossible ever to guess what he thought, much less what he felt. And now, except for a light in his blue eyes that she hoped wasn’t solely of her imagining, his chiseled features were a perfect mask—a barrier between the man inside and the world outside.

Catherine had become part of his outside world; would she ever get inside, behind the mask? She would like to have thrown her arms around him in welcome; but instead, she offered him a composed smile. “How pleased I am that you are returned. Tell me about your journey.”

They walked up the path toward the house together, Phillip giving her an account of calling on his friend George Whitefield. “He was desperately ill on his voyage from America, but is recovering. He hopes to accompany Lady Huntingdon to London in a few days.”

“And what of your services? Had you success?”

“Yes, but the most remarkable victory over Satan was scored before I left the Foundry.” Now, as he talked about his work, the stiffness fell away and he talked with animation. “Have you heard of the conversion of Mrs. Smithson? The night before I left, she wandered in off the street while I was preaching—”

“Smithson?” Catherine was immediately alive to the name. Could this be Isaiah’s mother?

“Yes. I instructed the sisters to call on her. Do you know if any have? Her tale was absolutely remarkable. She was returning from a bagnio where she had sought to sell herself for the sake of buying bread for her children—”

“Had she red hair?”

“It seems so, if I recall—”

“O Phillip,” Catherine so forgot herself as to take his arm. “It must be the same. Isaiah Smithson was my pupil, but he had to quit and go to sweeping when his father lost his job. And you say she found the Lord?”

“Indeed, it was a remarkable conversion. She seemed truly a new person.”

“Phillip, we must help that family. Do you think the Society might—?”

“Lend to an unemployed man whose children sweep? I believe the Society lending policies to be sounder than that. The Society will lend up to twenty shillings, but the sum must be repaid within three months. It seems most unlikely Smithson could meet those terms.”

“But we must do something.”

“Indeed we must. Will you call on her with me?”

Catherine readily agreed and they continued on up the path, talking of their work. And Catherine saw no reason to let go of the arm she held.

The following day Catherine clung to the same arm, as protection from the squalor around her. Chitty Lane off Tottenham Court Road was a row of dilapidated houses that had been turned into one-room dwellings.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.